[October 11, 2011]

Digital Signatures at City of Vernon Conquer Process Delays Once and For All

ARX, Inc., the leading provider of digital signature solutions, is very excited to announce the recent implementation of the CoSign digital signature solution at the City of Vernon, located in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Managers and other staff across the municipality's departments-including Engineering Planning, Corporate Services, Operations, Finance, and Protective Services-use the tool to digitally sign contracts and time sheets.

Wayne Ikesaka, Manager of Information Services at City of Vernon, explained that the drive for sustainability and reduced costs incited the need for the automated signing solution. He observed that the employee timesheet submission process was constantly generating wasted staff time, added costs, and process delays. "Every employee needs to fill out a timesheet twenty-six times a year, so we knew there were that many pieces of paper being printed out. From an efficiency and costs standpoint, an employee would type it out, then print and deliver it to the person who needed to sign, and the timesheet would finally be delivered to its final location. We have five administrative buildings, so there was a service transporting these documents between the buildings. Unfortunately, some documents were lost and needed to be resubmitted, which required more work from all of us." By automating the timesheet submission process using a digital signature, this burden was completely eliminated.

As a result of reuced paper use, Ikesaka points out that printing costs have also been cut. "We have to pay for prints and for a leased copy machine," he said. "Overall, the initiative to automate processes has saved us almost 25% of overall paper and copy costs, which is about $20K."

Additionally, turning to automated signature approvals enables the City of Vernon to keep processes moving forward regardless of a signer's location. "With digital signatures," Ikesaka explained, "managers have the ability to sign remotely. So, if a timesheet needs to be signed and they're at a conference or meeting, the payroll won't be delayed."

Some of the features of CoSign digital signatures that most appealed to Ikesaka were ease of use and price. "Simplicity is key," he said. "You can't make this too complicated for the users. They need to be able to very easily click on the spot that their signature goes, sign, and move on." He notes that CoSign's support for sectional signing-that is, allowing a signer to authorize only a defined section of a document-was especially useful, as it enables the possibility to use the solution with Counsel Reports that have multiple signers.

"Beyond the cost savings, it's very exciting to witness the shift to paperless processes and the improvements in efficiency taking place in cities and counties across North America," said Rodd Schlerf, VP Sales, ARX.

About City of Vernon

With a population of 36,000, Vernon is the commercial hub of the North Okanagan. Nestled in the grassland hills and surrounded by three lakes, Vernon boasts year round recreation opportunities that make it an attractive location for residents and tourists alike. In 2010, Vernon was ranked the third best city in BC by MoneySense Magazine based on prosperity, affordable housing, lifestyle and weather, and was ranked number one in entrepreneurial spirit by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

For more information, please visit http://www.vernon.ca/.

About CoSign Digital Signatures

ARX (Algorithmic Research) is a global provider of cost-efficient digital signature solutions for industries such as life sciences, healthcare, government, engineering, and energy. ARX's CoSign digital signature solution automates approvals affordably in a compliant manner, allowing organizations to go paperless, expedite business processes and save costs. CoSign is the only digital signature solution that is seamlessly integrated with Microsoft (News - Alert) SharePoint and other popular DM/ECM solutions. CoSign signatures are globally accepted by external partners without the need for proprietary-validation software. CoSign is also centrally managed through the organization's user directory for reliable control of signature privileges, and ease of use and administration. Learn more about the CoSign digital signature solution.

CoSign is a registered trademark of Algorithmic Research, Ltd. All other trade names and trademarks are the property of their respective holders.

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